Posted on 11/19/2004 8:23:25 PM PST by Dubya
Gary Qualls had put the letter from Louis down and tried to busy himself.
It had been hard to read the letter from his son, and he couldn't reply, not right then.
There's a lot going on here, Louis wrote. The next month will be some of the most serious combat the war has yet to see. Well, I'm right in the middle of it. I think I'm truly scared.
Dad, I need your prayers and your advice more than ever.
It was Tuesday, and Gary Qualls had returned to his house in Temple after a long weekend of hunting with an old Army friend. The trip had been a temporary distraction from worrying about his 20-year-old son, a Marine lance corporal from a reserve unit in Grand Prairie.
But distractions were always temporary. Reminders of Louis were everywhere - on CNN, on the front porch where his 1979 Harley-Davidson was parked, in the photos of Louis wearing his Temple High football uniform.
I know you've always been there for me. I just can't wait to come home. I want you to know that whatever happens in the next weeks, I have always looked up to you and I always will.
I love you and look forward to seeing you soon.
Your son,
Louis.
Louis joined the Marines after graduating from Temple High in 2001. It was hardly a surprise. He was all-boy, learning to shoot a rifle at a tender age, competing in martial arts, riding his Harley with his dad.
In high school, he wore the Air Force blue uniform of the Junior ROTC, carried the flag in the JROTC color guard, played linebacker for the Wildcats, ran track and made good grades too.
"He had a good pair of hands and he was quick on his feet," his dad said. "He played defense very well."
He was a squared-away kid in high school, quiet and attentive, according to his JROTC instructor, retired Lt. Col. Sid Thurston.
Mostly, he wanted to be like his dad. Gary had served in the Army and the National Guard for years and raised two sons almost entirely by himself.
"He had the vision that he wanted to serve in the military," Thurston said. "He looked up to his dad as an influence in his life."
In July, Louis got orders to mobilize with 85 Marines from Headquarters Battery, 2nd Battalion, 14th Marines. They said their goodbyes to family and friends on a hot morning outside the reserve center in Grand Prairie, then boarded buses.
"As soon as the mission came up, his hand came up," said Lt. Col. Roger Garay, the battalion's inspector. "His heart was in it."
Gary proudly told Louis' commander that day, "Sir, you give that boy half a chance and he'll give you everything he's got."
Those in Louis' unit were sent to Iraq to drive the heavy trucks for the infantry, but they did a lot more. In letters and e-mails, Louis told his father of house-to-house searches and how humbling they were.
"He told me, 'I thought I had a few problems when I left here,' " Gary said. "These people were so poor, they had dirt floors and a sheet hanging in the corner with a can for a toilet.
"He realized how lucky he truly was. He gained a lot more respect for life."
With less than three months of a seven-month tour behind him, Louis sent his dad an e-mail recently in which he said, cryptically, that he would be tied up for three or four weeks and wouldn't be in contact for a while.
"I knew where he was," his dad said. "Fallujah."
That was why the letter that came on Tuesday meant so much, a surprise card that Louis had picked up in a store on post, the kind with heartfelt words about sons and fathers.
About an hour after Gary read the letter inside the card came a knock on the door. Louis' younger brother, David, answered it. He came into the kitchen, where Gary had the refrigerator open.
"Dad, there's three Marines on our front porch and they want to talk to you," he said.
Gary knew why they were there. Fallujah.
"All I could do was stand at my door and say, 'No, not my baby.' "
There was a long silence as he remembered.
"Then I let them in."
Texans in Iraq
• Marine Lance Cpl. Louis Qualls, 20, of Temple died Tuesday as a result of enemy action in Fallujah, the Defense Department announced Thursday.
• Qualls was assigned to the Marine Corps Reserve's Headquarters Battery, 2nd Battalion, 14th Marines, in Grand Prairie.
• Qualls was at least the 110th Texan to die in the war in Iraq. Chris Vaughn, (817) 390-7547 cvaughn@star-telegram.com
© 2004 Star-Telegram and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved. http://www.dfw.com
Oh.....reading these stories really hurts. I read each one because I think it's so important that we know who these fine warriors are. God rest his soul and give his family comfort.
that was beautiful MEG33..
thank you Sir for sharing your fine son.. he died fighting to keep hell itself from our shores. and i will be forever thankful to him and you. Rest easy dear Louis.
Amen
God Bless you All
nicely put.
It angers me that such vermin as still fight us in Iraq and elsewhere still exact such a price. They are those who would send children to blow up children. They are cowards of the worst order and they are not each or by the thousands worth a single loss of a good Marine, Soldier or Sailor.
It angers me that we must suffer losses of good men when the parasites that we fight are not even to be considered human beings. Human beings do not disembowel and dismember defenseless women, or behead hostages, or blow up a pizza parlor.
Vermin such as this *must* lose their fight. There is no other choice. That this comes at such a cost as this fine young man today even amplifies my anger.
Oh, I know. But we must win this. We need to be worty of these sacrifices, and I wish we could extend our gratitude and sympathy to these folks. I want them to know that we notice.
Ping
Roger that.
"It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived." -George S. Patton
God Bless him....
We can do both. No parent should outlive his child, but the child will be waiting, happy.
May this brave young man rest in peace. People like him are performing the exalting work of bringing light to dark places and justice to age-old evil. He died fighting against the benighted acolytes of the Great Antagonist and the henchmen of a brutal dictator. What greater laurel could he have, than that he took up arms in the name of our People against men like these?
"Evil propers when good men do nothing."
WHAT A GOOD MAN!
"All gave some... some gave all."
Tears...
When Iraq has become a democracy, it would be fitting if they had access to the history of American and coalition soldiers who died so they could be free. Not just name and country of origin, but family accounts of the fallen soldiers and how they felt when they heard that knock at the door. Liberty comes with cost, Iraqis see violence and mayhem now, and may not appreciate what others are doing on their behalf. When they have time to reflect, this might be instructive.
Turn your hate towards love for our God and Nation. Be thankful of the miracle that is the United States of America. Be proud that we live in a society that is capable of producing such outstanding young men and women. Be amazed and in awe of Louis Qualls, and all of the others who willing stepped up and volunteered to fight and even die so that the rest of us can be free. Rejoice that there are millions more now that are free because of our willingness to fight for freedom and justice. Be at peace that his sacrifice was not in vain and our cause is just.
May we all be reminded that because of Brave Men like Corporal Quall's we all have just awoken from a slumber safe and sound here in the homeland.
With deepest sympathy from a fellow Texan I would like to say: "Thank You Mr. and Mrs Quall's" for producing such an exceptional American. May your Hero son RIP.
Respectfully, I will keep my hate towards those who seek to chain others. It is okay to despise those whose only desire is to dominate.
God Bless this Marine and his Family. My Prayers for them are Incoming.
God bless him and his family. His father can certainly be proud of his fine son.
The cynical and ego-driven media figures of this world aren't worthy to lace up his boots.
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